Mary's Tale of the Heroine Princess
by Peach the Hedgehog
Summary: Mary is taking her usual trip to Forget Me Not Valley when she is given a mysterious book. As soon as she opens it she becomes part of a new fantasy world! And what is unexpected is that she is supposed to be some sort of heroine, who is also a Princess!
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own anything in Harvest Moon.

**AN: I never expected to do a story like this. This idea was suggested by Awesome Rapidash, so I decided to do it. This story is dedicated to Char2happy for her birthday.**

The clouds rolled lazily over the sky of Forget Me Not Valley, and rays of the sun could be seen trying to peek through one of them. A gentle spring breeze was blowing on this beautiful morning, swaying the blades of grass on the ground, and the leaves on the trees. Mary walked on the path from her town, to this one, in order to visit her friend Lumina.

She liked to visit her friend on days the library was closed. It was always nice to get out every once and a while, instead of being in the library all day surrounded by books. Not that she hated that, since she loved to read books, and she had even been writing some of her own. Not very many people visited her library though, so sometimes it did get a little lonely.

The bi-speckled girl took in a deep breath, looking at the sights around her. As she did, she tried to figure out words that could describe the beauty of nature. Every writer knew that you had to help paint a picture in the heads of others to make a story good.

Still, Mary couldn't help sighing softly. It had been a while since she had written anything, and aside from the scenery, she didn't really have any form of inspiration. There had to be something, anything at all, that she could write. And yet she was drawing a blank.

"Maybe I could talk to Lumina about it when I get to the mansion," the girl decided, putting her hand through the long strands of black hair on her head. "I'm sure she could help me."

"Maybe I can help," suggested an unfamiliar voice nearby. Mary jumped a little as she came out of her thoughts, and looked for the owner of the voice. The one who spoke was standing on the bridge that the black haired girl would cross to get the mansion, since it was a straight shot, until you reached a long flight of stairs.

Mary had never seen this woman before, but the way she was dressed reminded her of witches from fairy tales. Well, besides the fact that she didn't have a pointed hat or green skin, something she didn't mind, as she didn't like seeing the old stereotypes all the time. She had long, sandy blonde hair and eyes that were the color of crimson. In her hand, she was holding onto something that looked like a book.

When Mary didn't respond right away, the woman stepped closer to her. "Did you hear me?" she demanded. "I said that maybe I could help you."

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I heard you," Mary said quickly, raising her hands so she could straighten her glasses.

"Good, I'm glad," the woman said with a smile as she took a couple more steps forward. "You can call me Witch Princess and as you can see, I'm a witch."

"Witch Princess?" the black haired girl echoed. She had heard it before, but from what she understood, a lot of people didn't get all that close to her. She only knew of even one person who seemed to care about the witch. Still, maybe she could help! She had thought of trying a novel where the main character was a witch of sorts. Maybe she could base her off of the Witch Princess! It was worth a try anyway.

"It's nice to meet you, Witch Princess," Mary said politely. "My name is Mary. And I'm looking for some inspiration for my novel. Maybe you could…"

Before the girl could finish, the blonde haired woman interrupted. "Ah, so you are an inspiring author then. I have just the thing that could help you."

Mary did not get a chance to say a word before the book that the witch was carrying was forced into her hands. Now that she had a good look at it, it wasn't the kind of book she had ever seen before, at least, not in real life anyway. The book's cover appeared to be made out of leather, and there were swirling golden designs on it. The girl checked the binding of the book for the title, but there wasn't a single word on the side.

"What is this book?" the girl questioned, tilting her head a little to the side.

"Oh, it's the perfect thing to help someone, such as you, find the inspiration you need," the Witch Princess explained. "I've given that book to many others before, and not long after they read it, they find the perfect story to write."

While this wasn't the way the girl originally intended to get her inspiration, she was getting really curious. It was hard for her to turn down a good story! And it had been a while since she had gotten a new shipment of books for the library, so it had been a while since she had anything new to read.

"So, what is the story about?" Mary asked eagerly. "Is it a mystery? A fantasy? Or maybe it's…"

The Witch Princess held up her hands to try and quiet the other girl down. "Calm down, Mary. First of all, I can't tell you because it will ruin the surprise. However, I can safely guarantee that the story will be to your liking."

At first, the bi-speckled librarian was disappointed that the Witch Princess wouldn't say anything more about the story that was in the book. However, at the same time, she knew it wasn't a bad thing. She didn't know, but maybe if the witch had talked about the story, she would give away some of the plot, or even some of the twists the story would contain. She didn't like hearing about spoilers if she could help it.

"Well, thank you very much, Witch Princess!" Mary exclaimed happily. "I'll be sure to give your book back to you when I'm done with it. Bye!" She waved her hands and walked passed the woman.

However, she did not notice the mischievous smile that appeared on the woman's face. "That worked well. This is going to be great!"

* * *

As Mary walked up the steps that led to Romana's mansion, a burning curiosity began to wash over the librarian. She looked at the book the Witch Princess had given her. She was going to show the book to Lumina when she got there, but could she wait that long? It wouldn't hurt if she took a little peek, would it?

Deciding it wouldn't hurt to take a quick look; Mary turned around and sat down on the step. She placed the book on the step she was sitting on, and smoothed out her blue dress. Mary reached out for the book and was going to open it up, when she heard footsteps coming her way. She smiled when she noticed the familiar brown haired farmer girl from the Starry Farm.

"Hello, Jill," she called.

"Hey, Mary," Jill greeted, her violet eyes sparkling. "What are you doing just sitting here? You're usually at the mansion by now, right?"

The girl with the long black hair nodded in agreement. "Yes, but I just wanted to take a look into this book that I got."

Jill had a curious expression on her face as she went up and sat down right next to Mary. The farmer gazed at the leather book with interest. "I've never seen a book like that before. Where did you get it?"

"The Witch Princess gave it to me," Mary explained. "She found out that I'm having trouble coming up with a new story, so she gave me this book to help me get inspired."

At the mention of the Witch Princess, Jill's look of curiosity switched to that of concern. "The Witch Princess gave that to you? Well, that was nice of her…"

"Something wrong, Jill?" Mary asked as she carefully pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose.

"I'm not sure," Jill admitted quietly. "But I'm not so sure about this, all of sudden."

Mary glanced at the book in her hands. She wondered why Jill felt the way she did. She was the friend of the Witch Princess, from what she had heard before. So wouldn't she trust her own friend? And the curiosity inside of the black haired girl burned like a flame in her heart. She was sure a quick peek wouldn't hurt.

Carefully, she opened the book to the first page. All she had time to do was read the first few words of the beginning. It said "Gather around and I will tell you a story."

Suddenly, there was a flash of blinding white light. Mary cried out in alarm as she heard Jill cry, "I knew it!" She could feel the farmer girl trying to pull the book away from her but by then it was too late. When the light finally cleared, the two girls were nowhere to be seen, and the book was once again on the steps.

The book was still open on the first page, though the cover looked like it was going to close. If Mary had gotten a better look, she would have seen that most of the page was blank. But now, words could be seen appearing on the page.

_"Gather around and I will tell you a story. The tale of a Princess, who will grow up to be a great heroine. What is the name of this Princess, you ask? Her name is Mary."_


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I own nothing in Harvest Moon.

Mary groaned softly, placing her hand on her forehead. It hurt a little bit, but the pain wasn't pounding. She found she was laying down on something that was nice and soft, along with a blanket that covered her body.

"W… where am I?" she murmured as she slowly opened her eyes. Her vision was a little fuzzy, but she could see bright colors around the room. She sat up and began feeling around her glasses, finding them on the table near the bed she was sitting on. She placed her glasses on her face, clearing her vision, and a gasp escaped her lips.

Mary found herself in a beautiful room, the walls pink and white. On the wall to her right, a full body mirror could be seen, and from the left, a window was open allowing the sunlight to shine on the pink carpet, and she could hear the birds singing their morning songs. A cabinet made of dark colored wood was close to the mirror.

"Where am I?" the raven haired girl repeated, looking around the room some more. She tried to think, but it was hard to get her thoughts in order.

The last thing she could remember was that she was with Jill, and they were sitting on the steps that led to the mansion. She had opened the book that the Witch Princess had given her and there was that flash of light. Next thing she knew, she woke up here.

As she was thinking, the door to the room opened, and a young woman walked into the room. She was wearing a green gown, and from where Mary was sitting, she could see her shoulder length blonde hair. Yet, she could also tell that she had never seen her before.

"Ah, Princess, it's good to see that you are up," the woman said with a smile.

"_Princess? Who is she talking to?"_ Mary thought, with a puzzled expression on her face.

The blonde haired woman looked curious as she walked over to Mary's bedside. "Are you okay, Princess Mary? You seem to be confused about something."

The words the woman said startled to bi-speckled girl. That woman called her 'Princess Mary.' But she wasn't a Princess! She was a librarian down in Mineral Town, and had even written stories of her own.

"Are you okay, Princess?" the woman asked, gazing at the girl before her.

"Oh… uh, yes, I'm fine," Mary said quickly. She didn't know what was going on here, but she figured that if she said anything about her questions, it would cause some unneeded problems. So she figured she may as well go along with it.

The woman smiled at the girl. "That's good to know. Breakfast is just about ready and I came to get you, Princess. Would you like me to help you get dressed?"

Mary nodded, wondering if the woman before her was some kind of maid. "Yes, I would appreciate that. Thank you."

Over the next few minutes, Mary got out of bed, and was dressed in a beautiful blue sequined dress, and a silver tiara was placed on top of her head. Looking into the mirror, Mary had to agree that she did look like a Princess.

"Come now, Princess Mary. I'll escort you to the dining room," the maid insisted.

Mary just nodded slowly and followed the woman into the hallway. She noticed many people standing around, talking, and doing whatever. All of them were dressed as guards, soldiers and maids. As she walked, she listened to the conversations around her and pieced everything together.

It seemed that she was the Princess of the Alekia Kingdom, the daughter of King Edward and Queen Alice. The Queen had passed away about a year ago. From what she could understand, there were occasions when she left the castle to be with her friends. She did this at least once a week. Alice thought it was good for her to get out every now and then, but her father, Edward, didn't seem to think so. He seemed to be rather protective of her, and ever since his wife passed away, he really didn't want her to keep going out. Still, she always did against her father's wishes.

"_Hm… going out at least once a week… that is like when I leave Mineral Town once a week to be with Lumina and Jill. Or when there is a festival."_ Mary had a thoughtful expression on her face. _"But I'm not sure I understand what is going on here. That book the Witch Princess gave me… Jill did try to warn me about it…"_

The next thing she knew, the maid informed her that she was at the front door of the dining hall. Well, she was hungry. Maybe she would feel better if she had something to eat. Even so, this whole thing was beginning to feel like some kind of dream, a very real dream, but still a dream.

* * *

After breakfast, Mary had been summoned to the throne room by her father. Or rather, the father this world claimed she had, King Edward. Supposedly, a visitor had come to see her when she was eating, and it had been suggested that they wait until the Princess was finished.

The throne room looked like it had jumped right out of the fairy tales that the raven haired girl had read. The floor was covered in red carpet, and the thrones were mostly gold, but were red cushioned. A royally dressed man was sitting on the left throne. Black hair could be seen under his royal crown and he also had a black mustache. For some reason, even though the name was different, she almost expected the king to look like her father Basil, but he didn't look anything like him.

However, what surprised her was the other man that stood in the room. He was dressed in a black robe that had white designs covering it. He had light brown hair and gave the girl a kind smile.

"Carter?" Mary questioned out loud, unable to help herself.

The man gave her a confused look. "Carter? I'm afraid you are mistaking me for someone else. My name is Heath."

"Oh, sorry," Mary apologized. She had been so surprised to see someone that looked like Carter; she said his name without even thinking about it. That meant that the priest didn't follow her and Jill into the book. And then she found that she was questioning herself when she realized that the Priest doesn't leave Mineral Town that often.

"Mary, do take a seat," Edward offered, motioning his hand to the empty throne.

"Yes, Father," the raven haired girl answered as she moved forward, being careful not to step on her dress. She wasn't used to wearing a Princess dress, but she had a feeling she was going to have to. She carefully sat herself down, and looked to the man who called himself Heath.

"Now then, you said you had a message for my daughter?" Edward questioned, leaning back against the throne.

"That is correct," Heath said with a nod of his head. "I am an oracle, who has come to tell you something important." Looking in Mary's direction, he continued, "You, Princess Mary, are about to embark on a journey, a journey that will prevent an evil being from taking over your kingdom. And if you do not act, not only will your kingdom be in danger, but other places as well could slip into darkness."

Mary's eyes grew wide with what she was hearing, but the man continued before she could say anything. "In order to protect what you hold dear, you must collect the six shards of the Star Shine Jewel. Only then… can your destiny be realized."

When the man finally finished talking, Mary quickly shook her head. "A… a journey? I can't be who you think I am. I don't even know how to fight!"

Heath waited for the Princess to finish what she was saying, before he spoke up. "I am not wrong. I know what I saw in the vision, Princess Mary. I've come all this way to give my message to you."

"You sound so sure," Edward murmured. "But even so, I couldn't put my daughter in such risk. Aside from what you claim you have seen, you have nothing to prove it either."

Just then, the doors to the throne room burst open, and a soldier rushed into room. "Your Majesty… your Majesty, the castle is under attack!"


End file.
